Touring-trip map



June 5, 1928.

A. A. EPSTEIN TOURING TRIP MAP Filed May 5, 1927 2 Sheets-Sheet l 7/ INVENTOR June 5, 1928.

A. A. EPSTEIN TOURING TRIP MAP OJ AIOBMIN Patented June s, 1928.

ALBERT A. EPSTEIN,

or NEW YORK, N. Y.

TOURING-TRIP MAP.

Application filed ma 5,

This invention relates to an article of manufacture in the form of a road map covering a prescribed trip, the construction of the same being such as to adapt it to mounting upon the steering wheel of a motor vehicle. With reference to its mechanical form, it may be stated that it is preferably constructed as a circular disk of such a diameter as to enable it to fit within the periphery of the steering wheel, and in order to.

facilitate its mounting and removal, ,the disk is provided with a perforation at its center and is slit from its center perforation to its outer periphery. When constructed of a semi-stiff but somewhat pliable material, this center perforation and the slit from the center outward enable it to be forced over the head of the steering post, above the steering Wheel, but beneath the spark and throttle levers, the natural resilience of the material enabling it to spring back into a closed or more or less flat condition which prevents its becoming accidentally removed from its normal position. Other features of the construction and certain illustrative features of the use of the touring map will be described with reference to the accompanying drawing in which Figure 1 illustrates a top plan view of a steering wheel having an embodiment ofthe trip map in place thereon, the head of the steering post being shown in section.

Figure 2 is a cross section through the map, taken longitudinally of the steering column.

Figure 3 is a detail View of the map alone, which, in the particular embodiment of geographical subject matter, is intended to represent the reverse side of the embodiment shown in Figure 1. v

Referring in detail to said drawing, 10 indicates the steering column or post on which is mounted the steering wheel 11 of any approved type, and 12 and 13 represent the spark and throttle levers mounted on their respective supports such as the tube 14 and shaft 15. Referring to Figure 3, the map is illustrated in the form of a circular disk 16 which has a central perforation 17 and a radial slit 18. Circular lines of perforations 19 are preferably formed around the central perforation 17, to enable the user to tear off circular strips atthe inner periphery of the disk in order to provide a size of opening which will best conform with the dimensions of the steering wheel head or post on which 1927. Serial Ijo, 189,032.

the map is to be mounted. .Any suitable number of perforated lines 19 may be formed one within the other to give ample range of adaptability to different sizes of steering wheel posts. With regard to the slit 18, it should be noted that it is not essential that the two edges of the disk bordering this slit be approximately contiguous to each other inasmuch as the prescribed function might be fully contributed even with a substantial space between these edges, so long as the inner periphery remaining is in excess of 180 of a circle, whereby the disk will be properly held in place. The disk may be formed of stiff paper or other fibrous sheet material, due regard being had to the requirements of more or less stiffness coupled with suflicient pliability and elasticity or resilience to enable. the disk to be slipped over the post on which it is to be mounted and to be retained thereon.

The purpose of the map is to provide road directions to the driver without the necessity of unfolding and spreading the ordinary type of road map, so that the hands of the driver are left free to operate the car. Obviously, many forms of the geographical subject matter to be covered ma be employed within the principles of t e invention. Oneparticularly satisfactory form is illustrated in Figure 1, in which the prescribed trip is supposed to start in Boston and terminate in Portland. The continuous road from Boston to Portland is, in this embodiment, laid out more or less tangentially from, a point near the forward edge of the slit to a point near the rear edge of the slit, so that the easterly direction is ra-' dially outward at all points. The road directions in such embodiment may be easily followed and the represented points readily oriented with the immediately adjacent country by rotating the map disk to a position in which the starting point is on the radius pointing direction to the right of the center and as the distance is traversed, rotating the map from time to time to such an extent as to more or less continuously keep the designation of the drivers location on the right hand radius referred to. In this way, the next succeeding objective point is always approximately in the direction indicated by the road on the map.

In further carrying out the principle illustrated in Figure 1, the reverse side of the disk may be provided with a counter part of the same map, as shown in Figure 3, with the succession of points reversed so that they will follow in due order on the return trip. Obviously, in such a map the easterly direction will now be directed toward the center and the road will proceed more-or less tangentially with corresponding orientation at all points.

The two forms of maps shown in Figures 1 and 3 are to be understood as intended only as examples of some of the many forms of geographical subject matter which may be applied to the construction set forth. The invention is not limited to the going trip and return trip being represented on ALBERT A. EPSTEIN. 

